Letters to the Editor - Nov. 29, 2007

To the editor: To all the "givers" and the "workers," Farmington Outreach says a huge thank you.

These are the volunteers of our branch of the Strafford County Community Action Agency, the wonderful local stores that made donations and the kind and caring people that brought in donations.

As of two weeks ago, we did not have enough to provide Thanksgiving baskets, yet everyone pulled together and we gave out 220 dinners. There was everything from the turkey to the pie. It was wonderful.

The biggest thrill was to work with the nine volunteers and help get those baskets ready, hand them out and help people take them to their cars.

The work was hard and long yet it was so worth it, especially during the hard times many are going through right now.

It's not over though. We are now gearing up for that same wonderful response during the "Gift Of Giving" for Christmas baskets.

So please keep it coming.

We say thank you to everyone who was involved during this Thanksgiving event.

Janette PlaistedStrafford County Community Action Steve Dean Farmington Veterans Group

Reality in the Middle East

To the editor: What is the real obstacle to peace between Israel and the Palestinians? The obstacle is not a refusal of Jews to live alongside Arabs. After all, a substantial minority of Israelis are Arabs, not Jews. The Israeli people and government have supported the creation of a Palestinian state ever since the creation of Israel in 1947. Two years ago, Israeli soldiers and civilians withdrew from Gaza in the latest of several attempts to find peace with the Palestinians.

The Palestinians have demonstrated their desire for peace by launching several thousand rockets into Israel since that withdrawal from Gaza. What President Bush and Secretary Rice need to face is that many Palestinians and other Arabs will settle for nothing less than the destruction of Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East. Until Arab governments and their citizens are willing to accept a Jewish majority in one small corner of the Middle East, there will be no peace in the region.

Richard EnglandDurham

Proud of Dover cadets and NJROTC

To the editor: I would like to take the opportunity to let the public know they can take pride in the NJROTC program at Dover High School.

I am a sergeant first class in the active army stationed at Ft. Drum, N.Y. Two of my children are in the NJROTC program at DHS and because of the distance between us, and my schedule, I rarely get the chance to see them at school events. I had the privilege to chaperone the DHS NJROTC team for a regional ROTC competition at Fall River, Mass., on Saturday, Nov. 17. Arrangements were made for the students to spend Friday night at Battleship Cove on a WWII battleship, the USS Massachusetts. While on the ship, there were events scheduled all the way to 11 p.m., which included a film orientation of the ship and a briefing from one of the actual crew members that served on the ship.

The first thing that impressed me was that between events the students, with no instruction to do so, started preparing for the following day of events by shining shoes, preparing their uniforms and even sharpening their skills by good-naturedly challenging another school to various competition events they could expect to perform the next day. This was impressive because these were all young teenagers who were taking initiative and showing great pride in who they are and what they were doing.

The next morning the cadets were up at 5 a.m., and once again took the initiative by packing up their gear and cleaning up the area while displaying an eager optimistic attitude. They moved to a local high school and had a grueling day that lasted until 6 p.m. with what seemed to be a never-ending string of events. In each event, they performed with snap and precision that was truly amazing to watch. Between events, cadets continued to practice to ensure they were razor sharp for upcoming events. Throughout all of these demanding events, I never heard one of the cadets complain. These cadets obviously work very hard at what they do and are extremely proud of whom they are. The community should be proud of them as well.

David MacEwenFort Drum, N.Y.

FCC move boring but important

To the editor: I know there are many important issues before us today. But don't overlook one of the "boring" ones: the FCC's current attempt to loosen anti-monopoly laws regulating our media (newspapers, radio, Internet, television). They are rushing to a vote on Dec. 18 in an attempt to push it through before the citizens have a chance to contemplate and comment.

The FCC's argument is that we now have so many news choices these days that these regulations are outdated. And our Congress and president are so corrupted by big business that very likely will buy it. Please contact your congresspeople and tell them we need more voices in the press, not fewer. And if you don't agree, think about the lead-up to the Iraq War. How often did you hear the press asking tough questions: How do we know that there are WMDs? Has the Bush administration planned properly for governing Iraq? Do we have enough troops? No, we didn't hear those questions. What we heard was "Rah, rah, rah," "Go Team Go!" and "God bless America." And many thousands have paid the price for our press' irresponsibility with their lives.

This current move by the FCC is just one more example of the Bush administration's lack of respect for democracy.

Fred MoyerDurham

Debate is more political theater

To the editor: I must give my commentary on the Nov. 15 Democratic debate.

As usual, it was more political theater than getting any real information as to what these candidates for president will do to balance the federal budget and start to pay down our national debt.

A second tier candidate got very little attention and was totally ignored in the media after the so-called debate. If the general public could think for themselves, they would have realized that Dennis Kucinich and Sen. Joe Biden were by far the most informed and by far the most honest, answering the questions without making short political speeches.

I have been in the Kucinich corner since 2004, when I was in the Republican presidential New Hampshire primary, mostly because of his positions on so-called free trade agreements, which are taking away millions of good American jobs with no end in sight.

That being said, I think Sen. Joe Biden, with his 35 years of experience, is more than qualified to be president of the United States. He understands the complexity of our nation's problems which must be contained before they become a crisis, which many problems have already become.

I am going to vote for Kucinich in the New Hampshire primary; however, I will vote for Hillary in the 2008 general election. She is going to be our next president, and Joe Biden (if he would accept) would be a great Vice President on her ticket.

Maybe Bill Clinton and Joe Biden could be a big influence on Hillary's monumental decisions that she must make to rebuild the damage done by President Bush's "deficits don't matter" economic policy, which has doubled the national debt in his two terms in office.

John RigazioBarrington

The following appear on at fosters.com

Stop the madness in Darfur

To the editor: The conflict in Darfur, which is in Western Sudan, broke out in 2003 when small farmers took up arms to fight for a greater share of resources. The conflict turned into genocide when the Sudanese government, backed the Janjaweed militia, brutally raped, tortured and killed over 400,000 people and drove 2.5 million people from their homes. In addition, the violence and chaos is spreading to neighboring Chad and the Central African Republic.

African Union peacekeeping troops stationed in Darfur have been valiant in a difficult cause. But these troops, which number just 7,000, have been unable to protect civilians or enforce a 2004 cease-fire. We as a nation must lead the world community by utilizing the UN and NATO to intervene forcefully and stop the mass slaughter of women, men and children.

I pray that racism is not the reason for the world's indifference. We intervened in Kosovo when 10,000 white people were murdered. Why we have not responded after almost half-a-million black people have been killed is a question that I ask myself again as I did after the debacle in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

The UN has already declared the genocide in Darfur to be the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today. We failed to act in Rwanda. Let us not repeat ourselves and doom thousands more men, women and especially children to rape, torture and finally death.

Sen. John Edwards has made clear his response to this crisis and I hope the rest of the candidates will do likewise. We must stop the madness. It is the only Christian thing to do. Please call your representatives and let them know you expect them to support legislation to authorize intervention in Sudan and stop the continuing holocaust today.

Kurt SchluterLebanon, Maine

Huckabee's policies miss the mark

To the editor: Former governor Mike Huckabee has convinced many Americans that he is a nice man with deeply held conservative social beliefs. He's been glib and persuasive in discussions and debates like the first guy from Hope Arkansas, namely Bill Clinton. Huckabee pleads with voters to give Hope a second chance.

Unfortunately, Huckabee's rhetoric is masking glaring economic faults. For example, sounding like John Edwards, Huckabee says America is a nation of rising income inequality and shrinking economic opportunity. He promises to address this situation with "reforms," usually a code word for taxes. Meanwhile, a just released detailed study based on nearly 100,000 actual tax returns by the U.S. Treasury Department shows Edward's and Huckabee's claims to be, in the words of The Wall Street Journal "hokum".

Huckabee also champions the Fair Tax or a national sales tax to supposedly replace most current federal taxes. Sounds great, but economic analysis by a number of experts shows the proposal to be deeply flawed. Supporters claim a rate of 23 percent would meet current revenue needs. However, they arrive at this rate by adding a tax of $30 to a $100 purchase and then saying that the $30 is only 23 percent of the $130 total purchase. Even with this slight of hand, detractors say the rate would need to be doubled to meet the government's needs. Think about a 60 percent sales tax.

Perhaps more troubling, the tax would apply to all purchases of new items including cars and houses. The tax would also apply to services, from haircuts to doctor's visits. If you're not ready to cry foul to the Fair Tax yet, consider that town and state governments would also have to pay the tax on purchases, raising all of our other taxes. This tax proposal, interestingly first advocated by the Church of Scientology, has other serious flaws and makes even the current federal tax morass look good by comparison.

Huckabee has minimal campaign staff support for taxes and economic issues which is manifested in ill advised support of the Fair Tax. This makes his popularity dangerous on economic and tax issues, the very issues which New Hampshire voters so famously focus on.

I am sticking with my choice of Mitt Romney as the Republican candidate who is right on economic and tax issues as well as social issues. Gov. Romney exudes confidence in the American people as the basis for our hope for a better future. We are all in need of more of that kind of "hope."

Mark SykasStratham

Faith in Hillary

To the editor: I am a Milton teen who has no idea what I am going to do with my life. I am scared if we vote anyone who is a Republican (in January's election) the middle class and lower class in my generation will be obsolete. I believe in Hillary Clinton because of the jobs she wants to create so my generation may have a chance at survival.

When I was a little girl, I was told I could be anything I put my mind to, but with the low number of jobs in New Hampshire I am scared I won't be able to find one when I finish school. But being a volunteer at Hillary's campaign office in Rochester, I learned that if we elect her she will work to make sure there will always be jobs for my generation and we won't have to worry about job security. Hillary already has plans to make college more affordable so teens like me will have a chance, that is why I have faith I have faith in Hillary.

Amanda Jones Milton

Clinton understands America's needs

To the editor: I believe Hillary Clinton will be an amazing president if she wins the election. She is focused and organized. She promises to make colleges more affordable for students like me. It's great that she believe that education is the gateway to a bright future and that everyone should have that opportunity no matter where you come from.

Most of all I think its great that she — as a mother, a wife, and a citizen — wants to put an end to the Iraq war and rebuild America's standing in the world. Hillary will be a wonderful president not only because she is a woman but because she is a citizen and part of a family and understands what her people need.

Natalie HernandezSomersworth

Good news from Iraq

To the editor: Iraqi President Nouri al-Maliki said last week that violence in his country has been significantly reduced over last year. His government also passed a budget, powerful proof that the government is moving forward and peace is spreading in Iraq.

This is good news for our military families and the Iraqi people, both of whom have suffered unspeakable losses during the violence.

This is not bad news for the Democrats and good news for the Republicans. Instead, this is good news for our country, and bad news for al-Qaida.

Where are the Democrats celebrating this progress?

John MorganitRochester

Fight FCC and corporate giants

To the editor: It is imperative to urge the FCC to stop the proliferation of corporate held media. We need more voices and programs that present all sides of the news and not controlled by a few corporate giants. Please pass S.2332. You can help by directly writing your congressional Representatives and Senators

Harriet ForkeyDurham

Obama's experience, judgment in question

To the editor: Sen. Obama would have only a few years of national political experience to draw on as president of the United States. This seems to me as pathetically little government experience on the national level and as a U.S. senator and Illinois congressman he has no executive management experience.

He states he can make up for the lack of experience with excellent judgment. Doesn't he need experience and knowledge gained over many years in a work environment to be able to make sound judgments?

A glimpse into Sen. Obama's ability to make excellent judgment calls might be reflected in a recent interview. Someone asked him what he would do if he was given $1 billion to use as he wishes. He said he would pay off the mortgage on his house and give the rest to his wife. Then, after some thought he said he would give a lot of the money to charities and contribute several hundred million dollars for mosquito netting to fight malaria in Africa. Although the netting will provide some protection from the mosquitoes, it will not protect the people when they venture beyond the netting. Will the netting eradicate or control the population of mosquitoes? No. And what about the more pressing health problem of HIV/AIDS? Sen. Obama didn't even think of this epidemic in Africa. Does this sound like a great thinker with excellent judgment?

On Feb. 13 Sen. Obama stated the 3,000-plus U.S. servicepeople who have died in Iraq were wasted lives. What is the impact of his remark on the morale of our troops in Iraq and throughout the armed services? What is the impact on the enemy?

Recently, in discussing Afghanistan and Pakistan, Barack said "I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance involving civilians." Then he caught himself and said, "Let me scratch that." Should he be making off the cuff statements about the use of nuclear weapons?

Obviously, Sen. Obama has a long way to go in developing sound judgment, excellent perception and critical thinking, and the presidency of the United States is not the position for him to learn and hone these skills.

Donald A. MoskowitzLondonderry

Huckabee is worth believing in

To the editor: I have not been this enthusiastic about a candidate since Ronald Reagan, nor have I ever written a letter to the editor before. But Gov Mike Huckabee has sparked that interest, and I strongly believe that he, like Ronald Reagan will be a great leader for our country.

What I like about Gov. Huckabee is that he believes this is a great country with great people in it, and if given the chance they can make this country great. He believes that the people know what is best for our country, not the government.

By watching and listen to Gov Huckabee I feel that he strongly believes in our constitutional rights, and if given the opportunity, I believe that he will defend those rights. He believes that our rights were not given to us by the government, but rather they are a gift from God. He strongly believes that the government is here to protect us not to provide for us. I urge all who read this letter to take some time and look at Gov. Huckabee's website and see for yourself what this man stands for and what he can offer this country as president.

I truly believe this man can move this country forward and protect our freedoms. I believe that this man has hope for a better future for the American people.

Pam MartelMerrimack

Giuliani not Romney on Jan. 8

To the editor: Arguments about who had a more successful administration between Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani usually involve issues like cutting taxes, balanced budgets, crime, welfare, immigration, etc.

But a simple way to decide who was the more successful leader would be to look at how the people of the state or city viewed each administration.

At the end of the Giuliani term in NYC, Michael Bloomberg, a lifelong Democrat, decided the only way he could run successfully for mayor was to run as a Republican.

In a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans by a four or five-to-one margin Bloomberg believed that he not only needed to run as a Republican but that he had to run on the tough conservative policies on crime, welfare and fiscal discipline that Rudy Giuliani implemented and promoted during his eight years as mayor.

In the ensuing election Bloomberg won in a landslide over a well-known and established liberal Democrat, Mark Green.

Contrast that with the events in Massachusetts after Mitt Romney. After four years of Romney as governor the people of Massachusetts elected the most left-wing governor in its history, Deval Patrick.

Romney couldn't deliver the goods. He failed to get his own lieutenant governor, Kerry Healey, elected.

The people of Massachusetts gave Mitt Romney a big thumbs down on his four years as governor.

That's why it is clear that Rudy Giuliani is the most successful and qualified person to be President.

He is the one Republican with the results and experience to make the changes necessary in Washington necessary to keep America safe and prosperous.

Please vote for Rudy Giuliani in the Jan. 8 primary.

Richard J. Florino Jr.Windham

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.